Department for Transport

Aircraft: 5G

Viscount Stansgate: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking in respect of the concerns raised by the aviation industry about the potentially dangerous effects of 5G networks on certain categories of aircraft.

Baroness Vere of Norbiton: We continue to monitor US Aviation industry concerns that the US 5G network could affect equipment onboard aircraft.The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) is leading on assessing any risks from the implementation of the UK 5G network on aviation safety, in conjunction with the Ministry of Defence, OFCOM, and industry stakeholders. The CAA has issued guidance to UK operators throughout the world on 5G status in other countries, including the US.The UK CAA will continue to monitor the situation, and both my department and the CAA is in close contact with industry, the US Federal Aviation Administration, the EU Aviation Safety Agency and other stakeholders on this.

Department for Education

Schools: Repairs and Maintenance

Lord Jones: To ask Her Majesty's Government how much was spent on the (1) upgrading, and (2) improvement, of (a) primary, and (b) secondary, state school buildings for the years (i) 2015, and (ii) 2000.

Baroness Barran: The department allocates annual condition funding to schools and those responsible for school buildings. Since 2015, the department has allocated £11.3 billion to maintain and improve school buildings, including £1.8 billion for the financial year 2021-22.Local authorities (LAs), large multi-academy trusts and large voluntary-aided (VA) school bodies receive an annual school condition allocation to invest in capital maintenance and upgrades across the schools for which they are responsible. Stand-alone schools, small academy trusts and smaller VA bodies are eligible to apply for funding through the Condition Improvement Fund.All schools also receive funding to spend on their capital priorities through an annual devolved formula capital allocation.In addition to condition allocations, we deliver major rebuilding programmes centrally, including the Priority Schools Building Programme, which is rebuilding or refurbishing more than 500 schools in the poorest condition. In June 2020, my right hon. Friend, the Prime Minister, announced a new 10-year School Rebuilding Programme. We have announced the first 100 schools to benefit from the programme, as part of a commitment to 500 projects over the next decade.In the 2015-16 financial year, the department allocated a total of £5.1 billion in capital funding to schools, including funding for rebuilding projects and to deliver school places. This includes £1,399,601,236 in condition funding to schools and those responsible for school buildings. You can find the allocations for individual schools here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/school-capital-funding. This funding is not broken down between primary and secondary schools because much of the funding was allocated to LAs, academy trusts and VA school bodies to invest based on local knowledge.In the 2000-01 financial year, the department allocated £1.9 billion in capital funding for schools. A breakdown of how this funding was spent across different projects is not readily available.

Schools

Lord Jones: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many (1) primary, and (2) secondary, academy schools there are at present.

Baroness Barran: As of 1 January 2022, there are 6,474 primary academies and free schools, and 2,768 secondary academies, free schools, university technical colleges and studio schools. Primary academies include middle-deemed primary schools, whilst secondary academies include all-through schools, middle-deemed secondary schools and 16 to 19 academies.

Schools: Absenteeism

Lord Storey: To ask Her Majesty's Government what support they are giving to the Children's Commissioner's inquiry to track down the thousands of children who have gone missing from school during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Baroness Barran: The department is very supportive of this work. Regular attendance at school is vital for children’s education, wellbeing and long-term development.The Children’s Commissioner, Dame Rachel de Souza, pledged to do this work at the inaugural meeting of the attendance action alliance, which was hosted by my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education, on 9 December 2021. The Office of the Children’s Commissioner is updating the department on its progress, which will be reported back to the alliance. Where necessary, the department will respond to any recommendations.To support the execution of their responsibilities, the Children’s Commissioner has access to a range of department data sets. The department is also exploring how to improve the availability of attendance data with some urgency.We welcome the Children’s Commissioner’s focus on children missing from school. The department is committed to a form of local authority register for children not in school. This would help local authorities undertake their existing duties to ensure children receive a suitable education and help safeguard all children who are in scope. We will set out further details on this in the government response to the ‘Children not in school’ consultation, which we will publish in the coming weeks.The department continues to make clear that schools and local authorities should be identifying children who are persistently absent, or at risk of persistent absence, and is developing further plans to support them to return to regular education.

Schools

Lord Storey: To ask Her Majesty's Government whatassessment they have made, if any, of the effects of reducing the school week from five days to four; whether they are aware of any schools in England Wales seeking to introduce a four day week; and if so, whether they are empowered to do so.

Baroness Barran: Education is a devolved matter, and the response will outline the information for England only.A review into the current use of time in schools and 16 to 19 providers in England has been undertaken, and the results were published on 4 November 2021 here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/review-of-time-in-school-and-16-to-19-settings. The review found that more time can improve pupil and student outcomes, but the extent of any benefit is dependent on how well the time is used. We need to ensure that all children are spending quality time in school, where they can access the full breadth of the curriculum and extra-curricular activities to maximise their overall experience and give them the best chance to succeed, regardless of age, background or ability.The review did not assess the effects of reducing the school week from 5 days to 4. We are not aware of any schools in England that are seeking to introduce a 4 day week.Schools should organise the school day and school week in the best interest of their pupil cohort, to provide them with a full time education suitable to their age, aptitude, and ability. The structure of the school week should not be the cause of inconvenience to parents and it is unacceptable for schools to shorten their school week unless it is a direct action to support and enhance pupils’ education.The Education (School Day and School Year) (England) Regulations 1999 require all maintained schools to be open to educate their pupils for at least 380 sessions (190 days) in each school year. Academy trusts (of academies and free schools) are not bound by these regulations.

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

Tigray: Armed Conflict

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made concerning reports of conditions in the blockaded hospital in Mekelle, Tigray; what discussions they have had with the government of Ethiopia regarding medical supplies reaching that hospital; and what steps, if any, they will take, to provide support.

Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park: On her visit to Addis Ababa on 20 January 2022, the Minister for Africa discussed the clear need for an urgent improvement in humanitarian access with the Government of Ethiopia, including in her meeting with Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.The humanitarian response in Tigray is at standstill owing to the de facto blockade of the region imposed by the Government of Ethiopia since July 2021. The blockade has also caused major disruption to the provision of essential services. UK funded partners report that single-use items including medical gloves and surgical materials such as chest drains are being washed and reused significantly increasing the risk of infections for patients. The UK is appalled at reports that civilians are dying due to the unavailability of insulin and other generic medicines.According to the latest available information from the UN, no humanitarian aid trucks entered Tigray during the period 14 December 2021 - 13 January 2022 with only 12% of required aid permitted to enter Tigray since July 2021.

Tigray: Armed Conflict

Lord Alton of Liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of reports that Ethiopian air force strikes on the Mai Aini refugee camp have killed three Eritrean refugees and injured four.

Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park: We are deeply concerned by recent airstrikes in northern Ethiopia. The Minister for Africa raised her concerns about this with Minister Redwan in Addis Ababa 20 January.We call for a ceasefire by all sides, including the Ethiopian Government, to end hostilities. We support the call by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees for all parties to the conflict to respect the rights of all civilians, including refugees. The indiscriminate targeting of civilians, no matter the weapon used, is against international law, and is entirely unacceptable.The Foreign Secretary, as Chair of the G7 Foreign and Development Minister's meeting, made a statement on 12 December 2021 that called for an additional independent investigation on human rights violations as recommended by the Joint Investigation report from the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission. The UK supported the Human Rights Council resolution of 17 December that mandates an independent and transparent mechanism for investigation and redress of human rights violations. The UK will continue to support the UN in the need for independent, transparent and impartial investigations and will work to ensure that those responsible for these atrocities are held to account.

Slovenia: British Council

Lord German: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the value of the British Council's presence in Slovenia; and what have been the principal successes of its work in that country.

Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park: We welcome the contribution the British Council has made to UK-Slovenia relations since it opened its offices there in 1992. The British Council's work across the education, cultural and science and innovation sectors in particular have been an important part of deepening UK-Slovenia relations, fostering strong links between our citizens and promoting the exchange of best practice.

Ministry of Defence

Defence: Finance

Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle: To ask Her Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to signing up to the “Peace Dividend Campaign”.

Baroness Goldie: The first responsibility of Government is to protect its citizens. Defence is one of a full spectrum of levers that we routinely use - alongside diplomatic, intelligence, economic, legal and strategic communication tools. For example, Defence continues to play a direct role in humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, most recently through ongoing Royal Navy support to the international disaster relief efforts following the tsunami in Tonga; and last year providing a Royal Fleet Auxiliary vessel to assist the US humanitarian aid mission in Haiti. Our Armed Forces are also always ready to respond to requests to support civil authorities, and from vaccine supply logistics to front line medical support they have played a critical role in supporting the response to the COVID pandemic. We must stay ahead of the increasingly complex threats to our people and allies by investing in, rather than cutting, defence budgets. That is why we are increasing defence spending by over £24 billion over the next four years.